Yesterday, Mary Nolan (30) got her hands on a stunning new Vera Wang ballgown – for the show-stopping price of just €100.

She snapped it up at the Buy My Dress charity sale, which was held across the country in aid of Down Syndrome Ireland.

Now in its second year, the event encourages women to donate dresses they no longer wear, and are sold during the one-day event.

Mary, from Clondalkin, Dublin, said she couldn’t believe her luck when she got the dress. And in her size too.

“It actually belonged to someone who had bought it as a back-up wedding dress in case she changed their mind about her other dress,” she said at the event at the Royal College of Physicians on Kildare Street.

“I didn’t buy it for any special event. I just bought it to have it because it would be perfect for a ball.”

The champagne-coloured designer dress still had its tag on – but the price had been removed. However, a Vera Wang wedding dress starts at €1,600 and can cost up to €10,000.

The initiative began last year when Down Syndrome Ireland collected and sold 1,500 dresses. They raised €35,000 and earned the title of Fundraising Campaign of the Year in the process.

On Wednesday night the dress count in Dublin was 1,550, with 1,100 in Cork and 850 in Galway. However, Sheila Flanagan of Down Syndrome Ireland said more women were arriving with dresses and they were hoping to sell 4,000 dresses and raise €100,000.